NFU Urges Congress to Schedule Floor Time to Vote on Farm Bill 

The National Farmers Union (NFU) sent a letter urging Congressional representatives to sign a meeting request to discuss scheduling floor time for a vote on the farm bill, which is set to expire on Sept. 30. The request letter is being circulated by Reps. Kristi Noem, R-S.D., and Peter Welch, D-Vt.

"The Senate and the House Committee on Agriculture have already passed their own versions of the farm bill and the full House must act soon," NFU President Roger Johnson noted in the letter. "As such, I urge you to sign the letter to request a meeting with Leader Cantor in order to move the farm bill process forward."

Also on Sept. 12, Rep. Bruce Braley, D-Iowa, filed a discharge petition to get the 2012 farm bill voted on by the full House. If a majority of the House of Representatives signs the petition, the bill will be automatically taken to the floor to be voted on.  It's a SLOW GO on signatures for the Discharge Petition- only 51 members have their names on the Petition at this point- two signed on Friday and then removed their names.  There are NO members from either Kansas or Oklahoma that have signed the discharge petition.  

"The filing of today's discharge petition is necessary because House leadership has refused to bring the bill to the floor. We are encouraging all of our members to contact their representatives to stress the importance of signing the petition and force Congress to act," said Johnson. 

Click here for more of this story on our website.  You'll also find a link to the request letter and a link to the list of signatories to the discharge petition.

Even Wisconsin Representative Ron Kind Calls for Floor Action on Farm Bill  

As Congress wraps up one of the last weeks of business before Election Day, U.S. Rep. Ron Kind (D-WI) called on his Republican colleagues to stop playing games and bring a Farm Bill to the House floor. Kind is well known for his intense desire to gut the Commodity Title as envisioned by the House Ag Committee- and he has been looking forward to taking another whack at this year's proposal on the House Floor.

"It's time to stop kicking the can down the road on the Farm Bill," said Rep. Kind. "It's our responsibility to take a real look at our farm programs, reform what is not working, end huge taxpayer subsidies that distort the market and do not help family farmers, and pass a food and farm bill for the 21st century."

Republican leadership has refused to bring a Farm Bill to the House floor, despite the bill moving through the House Agriculture Committee on July 11. Prior to that, the Senate passed their farm bill on June 21, with enough time for the House to take up the legislation before programs are set to expire on September 30, 2012. 

Click here for more. 

Study Shows Telemedicine Improves Rural Health Outcomes

Future investments in telemedicine are critical, according to presenters in a legislative study held by the Oklahoma House Public Health Committee.            

"We heard from both state agencies and private sector health care providers today about what a critical tool telemedicine has been and could be to improve health outcomes in rural Oklahoma," said state Rep. Joe Dorman (D-Rush Springs), who requested the study. "It was clear that telemedicine needs to be a part of our health care funding, as it can both reduce costs and improve services in both the government services and private sector health care."            

Dr. Venkat Rajaram, a interventional cardiologist at Midwest Regional Medical Center, said telemedicine can address health outcomes related to heart disease in rural communities.             

"Cardiovascular disease is the No. 1 cause of death in the nation and especially in Oklahoma," said Rajaram. "Telemedicine can be the difference between life and death in addressing cardiovascular conditions. Ideally, a blocked artery needs to be opened within 90 minutes. Certain determinations made by specialists in addressing stroke patients need to take place within the first three hours after symptoms have appeared. That is not possible in a lot of rural communities without the help of telemedicine technology."

Click here to read more. 

New Agritourism Web Guide Helps Farm Operators Keep Visitors Safe

Agritourism is more popular than ever, with millions of people visiting corn mazes, pumpkin patches, pick-your-own operations and other agricultural attractions every year.

Keeping visitors safe is the purpose of a new interactive web guide.

Farmers can select virtual walk-throughs most appropriate for their operations. These walk-throughs identify health and safety hazards and provide resources to fix the hazards.

The walk-throughs and remedies are based on "Agritourism Health and Safety Guidelines for Children." The guidelines were originally published in 2007 by the National Children's Center for Rural and Agricultural Health and Safety, part of the National Farm Medicine Center at Marshfield Clinic Research Foundation, Marshfield, Wis.

To read the rest of the story and for links to the new web guide and the health and safety guidelines, please click here.

Imported Fire Ants Pose Threats to Oklahoma Hay Buyers

Imported fire ants can pose serious threats to people, young animals, crops and equipment. Imported fire ants are non-native pests which are often introduced to new areas through transported hay bales. As ag producers begin buying hay for livestock, the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry is working to educate producers of the threat imported fire ants pose and how to ensure their property does not become susceptible.

Imported fire ants are 1/8 to 1/4-inch long and reddish-brown or black. They are best recognized by their aggressive behavior and mound-shaped nests. They respond quickly and aggressively when disturbed. The ants normally eat insects, but will feed on almost any type of plant or animal material causing direct danger to crops.

As of 2008, imported fire ants covered more than 320 million acres in 13 states including parts of Oklahoma. Baled hay is included in a federal quarantine regulated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) to help stop the spread of imported fire ants. Restrictions are imposed on the movement of hay from quarantined areas into or through non-quarantined areas.

To learn more about protecting your operation from fire ants, click here.

Federal Veterinarians Balking Over Inspecting Mexican Cattle Imports in Mexico  

"These folks are scared skinny," said Bill Hughes, a lawyer for National Association of Federal Veterinarians, which represents the inspectors, who are employed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. "They don't want to go."

"Officials from the agency's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service met with the concerned veterinarians on Thursday to brief them on safety measures at the new cattle pens."

The WSJ quotes Hughes as saying that the Vets are still weighing their options after traveling to the pens this past Thursday and seeing the setup for themselves-  "They haven't decided whether they would be willing to make the trip back there on their own, added Mr. Hughes, but they say that most likely would not."  Click here for the full article that also quotes our friend Ross Wilson of the Texas Cattle Feeders Association on the situation that remains unresolved.

Record Numbers of 4-Hers and FFA members Judge Livestock at the State Fair of Oklahoma This Past Friday

It was a record number of 4-H and FFA members that traveled to the 2012 State Fair of Oklahoma to participate in Friday's Livestock Judging contest, sponsored by the Oklahoma Farm Bureau Young Farmers & Ranchers Committee. 690 youth judged the various classes of livestock at the annual event.  The two top individuals at the 2012 event were Gatlin Squires of Kingfisher FFA, top Senior FFA individual and Cassi Allread of the Canadian County 4-H Clubs was top Senior 4-H individual.

Top teams included Yukon FFA as the top Senior Division FFA squad while Chickasha FFA claimed top honors in the Junior FFA division. In the 4-H, the top Senior squad was from Canadian County, while the best Junior Division team was Kingfisher County #5.   

Click here for the complete listing of the winners from this year's contest- one of the traditions of the opening weekend of the State Fair of Oklahoma.